Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of my favorite shows from the late 90s / early aughts. It has all of the things I like in my fiction: horror, comedy, feminism, subverted expectations, and a woman who literally kicks so much ass posterior. With that said, in honor of the fact that today is both Reformation Day and Halloween, I’d like to call attention to the fact that, in Roman Catholicism, the Virgin Mary kind of kicks ass posterior. Exhibit A is this illustration (from a 13th century book) of Mary punching the devil in the face:

Admit it, your day can always be made just a little bit better by a picture of Mary punching Satan in the face. Exhibit B is this statue of Mary as the Woman of the Apocalypse from Revelation 12, spearing Satan through the head:

Even if you don’t think Mary is the woman from Revelation 12 (and I don’t), you have to admit that’s kind of awesome. Then there’s this painting of Mary, unfazed by the dagger lodged in her shoulder. Apparently she’s planning on rubbing some dirt in it and walking it off:

Finally there’s Mary in armor teaching Joan of Arc how to swing a sword, like a divine 15th century Mr. Miyagi: If the above images are any indication, Joan is learning from the best! You don’t have to be Catholic to appreciate Mary the Demonslayer in Roman Catholic art. Happy Halloween and Happy Reformation Day!

I have known the plot of this book and its creation background for forever, but have finally sat down and read it for the first time. It exceeded my expectations and no film adaptation does it justice.

This book was amazing. Miller actually tries to deal with difficult issues, as in his struggles with raising a severely autistic daughter. You might ask, "How can you believe in answer to prayer given your daughter’s condition?" Believe …